This is my first Father's Day without my Dad, who came into the picture in my teen years. He was a heroin addict and alcoholic for the majority of his life, and died once he got clean due to years of abuse. Nine strokes caused by years of partying hard and falling into a black hole of excess left him unable to recognize me the final times I ever saw him conscious. He was deathly afraid of me and treated me like a fabergé egg, something delicate that he was too afraid to handle with his clumsy hands. I loved him.
"You'd have lost that weight, you'd have gone so straight,
You'd have made my wedding day
You'd save my youth from that bullet of truth,
You'd have kept those wolves at bay
But you were away even when you were here"
If your Dad is still alive and you're on speaking terms, call him with a fun story from your childhood. Remind him of better days.